Thread by @redistrictAZ

This is a rehash in some degree of the actions of @ArizonaIRC Commissioner David Mehl, the chairwoman @ErikaNeuberg and the @SALCLeaders to KNOWINGLY and DECEITFULLY promote the purely partisan #TucsonGerrymander to benefit a sitting #AZGOP State Legislator, @VinceLeach

and in doing so undermine the integrity of the @ArizonaIRC itself.

Commissioner Mehl used his position of public trust on the @ArizonaIRC to advance a personal, partisan interest. That is the textbook definition of corruption.

That he attempted it in full-daylight makes it no less corrupt. The fact that he tried to hide it shows he knew it was corrupt. @ErikaNeuberg feigns confusion as to why this is fundamentally different from the @NNHRC1, the #LatinoCoalition or others submitting proposed districts.

I find this confusion genuinely disingenuous. But giving her the benefit of doubt, this is my attempt to explain it to her.
1) Evidence is substantial that all involved with the #TucsonGerrymander (Mehl, SALC) knew its provenance (Pima Co. GOP)

and indeed were primarily engaged in crafting the plan w/ @VinceLeach

2) Despite his firsthand role, Com. Mehl attempted to conceal its origins and give it the veneer of "business leadership" respectability by loosely associating it w/ @SALCLeaders..

3) By the time @ArizonaIRC voted on the #TucsonGerrymander (3:2) the provenance was known (@RealPimaGOP /AnaClark/). And yet is was integrated into evolving draft plans anyway!

4) As one of the five voting members of the @ArizonaIRC, Commissioner Mehl was inappropriate to engage in this activity at all. And knowing this he attempted to present a more neutral relationship to the plan.
DO two lies cancel each other out? and make a truth?

5) One last point on the #TucsonGerrymander - it was created by partisans for partisan interest by GOP operatives for a GOP elected leader using state staff and resources (!). Given the lukewarm defense (but still a defense) of the @SALCLeaders at the hearing yesterday (12/4)

you'll be able to knock me over with a feather if there is a shred of evidence @SALCLeaders conducted even a minimal survey of its board, members, or the community it purports to serve about the need, desire and plan executed to create the #TucsonGerrymander.

6) IN CONTRAST: @NNHRC1 and other tribal interests presented draft plans and justifications of requests to the @ArizonaIRC in OPEN meetings - There was no attempt to hoodwink the commission - their asks were public, straightforward, and direct. In in alignment with federal law.

7) The 22 federal tribes have standing under the federal Voting Rights Act to request an effective opportunity district - @SALCLeaders do not...

8) Not providing an effective opportunity district under the federal voting rights act could/would be considered a dilution of minority voting rights. This is true for American Indians and the Latino population.

Again, #GOP, #DEMS, or @SALCLeaders DO NOT have this standing.

9) After months of discussions the Tribal communities seem to have come to a consensus among themselves -
- See how that works? Lots of discussion to come to consensus -- not backroom deals and special connections?
And in the process the Navajo Nation and other

tribal communities have made a compelling case as to why their requests are legitimate throughout the state.

10) and then there is the issue of demonstrated racially polarized voting affecting the Am Indians throughout AZ as presented by Dr. Handley

11) And to point out the obvious, @ArionaIRC Vice Chair Watchman, is a member of the Navajo Nation. The Arizona tribes could have easily attempted a similar back-room deal... IF they and Vice-Chair Watchman were as equally integrity-challenged as demonstrated by Com. Mehl.

12) Ditto the proposed districts from the #LatinoCoaliton for Fair Redistricting. These proposed districts are a product of consensus built on months of discussions with community members and leaders.
13) And here too racially polarized voting is both demonstrated and reported.

14) OK - but what about the maps from the Coconino County Board of Supervisors? Surely those are suspect, right? NOPE. Fair and Square. Developed in consensus, presented in open meetings and consistently named, represented, and advanced to meet multiple constitutional criteria.

15) What about the "Sylvia Allen" map? (Which is STILL not made public) a former AZ legislator wants her old/new seat in the State Legislature. She transparently presented it and mobilized her own army. The @ArizonaIRC can consider if it meets the criteria -- and IF it is a

reasonable reflection of AZ interests. It is also far more respectable than the corrupt pretense concocted by Commissioner Mehl, his @SALCLeaders and @RealPimaGOP pals to give a veneer of respectability to the #TusconGerrymander for @VinceLeach

16) To sum up, @ErikaNeuberg - the #TucsonGerrymander stands out from other proposed maps because of its corrupt provenance, not that it advances a partisan interest. But partisan interests have no standing in the Prop. 106 constitutional criteria. Thus the attempts to hide it.

This does not have to be your legacy. The #TucsonGerrymander has been exposed for what it is. Only engaged Arizonans are paying attention right now. If you allow these districts to stand, your name @ErikaNeuberg & #TucsonGerrymander will be forever linked. In not a good way.

Your own role @ErikaNeuberg on the @ArizonaIRC is itself suspect. You can shrug off the suspicion and criticism. You've done so repeatedly. salon.com/2021/12/04/wil…

The bottom line: None of this will matter if you use your power in the next three weeks to create #FairDistricts for Arizona for the next decade.

There is a lot of work to get there. The first step is to reject the #TucsonGerrymander.

It is late. But not yet too late.